Arm slings



Nov. 2, 1965 c. H. GROESBECK 3,215,138

ARM SLINGS Filed Oct. 31, 1962 Illl WINS m was mgwllum INVENTOR. CHA RLES H. Geozssscx BY EDWARD D. O'BR/AN A TTORNEY 3,215,138 ARM SLINGS Charles H. Groesbeck, 14352 Beach Blvd., Space 104, Westminster, Calif. Filed Oct. 31, 1962, Ser. No. 234,459 2 Claims. (Cl. 128-94) The present invention relates to surgical appliances. More specifically the invention is concerned with mechanical surgical arm slings arranged to be removably suspended from the shoulder of a person afflicted with a broken or lame arm to provide comfortable and medically prescribed support for the arm.

Arm slings normally provide means whereby a broken or lame arm can be effectively immobilized while at the same time permitting the person so afliicted to carry on at least limited normal activities. In the past this has usually been elfected by the use of the well known gauze or cloth sling. However, such slings sufiFer many undesirable characteristics. They are generally regarded as being unsightly, extremely uncomfortable for the wearer in warm weather and as being undesirable because they require the assistance of another person for correct positioning on a wearer. Additionally, cloth type slings are subject to rapid soiling and accordingly require considerable attention for laundering and frequent changing for appearances sake.

This cloth type sling and other mechanical type slings have the additional disadvantage of causing much inconvenience to users in their efforts to conduct certain therapeutic treatments frequently prescribed by physicians. It is well known that if an arm is required to be set in a cast that a sling is necessary to relieve a person of the burdensome weight of the cast. However, once the cast has been removed or in other cases where different types of arm injuries or diseases are involved, physicians require a routine of treatment wherein the arm must be exercised free of the sling for short but frequent periods. It

is easy to imagine the frustration of a person required to I have assistance to repeatedly manipulate the sling when such treatment is involved. While some of the mechani- -cal types of slings permit facile removal of the arm from the sling it is usually necessary for the patient to constantly wear the sling or be subjected to considerable effort either alone or with the help of another person to completely remove the sling for the sake of comfort.

Accordingly, it is a broad object of this invention to provide a new and improved surgical sling not subject to the disadvantages enumerated above.

It is another object of this invention to provide an arm sling that is readily adjusted for use with persons of a wide range of physical size and to position the arm cornfortably in a prescribed carriage position.

It is a more specific object to provide a mechanical arm sling including a comfortably worn shoulder hook and an arm rest hook which automatically assumes a position providing optimum comfort for the person wearing the sling.

A still further object of this invention is the provision of arm slings which are inexpensive of manufacture, convenient and dependable in operation, readily adjustable to a wide range of sizes and capable of performing properly after long periods of operation.

The manner in which the advantages of the present invention are more particularly realized and its further objects and features achieved will become more clearly apparent from the subsequent detailed description of the invention taken in reference to the accompanying drawing in which:

FIG. 1 is a view of one form of the arm sling of the invention applied to a patient;

United States Patent 3,215,138 Patented Nov. 2, 1965 ice FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the arm sling of FIG. 1 in one of its modes of assembly;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 3-3 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 4-4 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is an alternative assembly of the arm sling shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of an alternative assembly for use in conjunction with the arm sling shown in FIG. 1.

The accompanying drawing is primarily intended so as to illustrate presently preferred means of constructing arm slings falling within the scope of this disclosure. -It is to be understood that those skilled in the art to which the invention pertains may effect alterations in the embodiments of the arm slings disclosed by the use of routine and ordinary engineering skills without departure from the inventive concepts of the invention. Also, further equivalent means can be employed in order to accomplish the operations and structural advantages of the invention.

As an aid toward understanding this invention it can be stated in essentially summary form that it involves a mechanical arm sling in the form of a cushioned shoulder hook and a pivotally attached arm supporting book.

The invention can be more fully understood by direct reference to the accompanying drawings wherein FIGS. 1 and 2 show one embodiment of the arm sling comprising the present invention. As can be seen the structural arrangement of this sling 10 is of explicit simplicity and is essentially formed by an arcuate shoulder book 12, an arm support hook 14, and an adjustable interconnecting link 16 pivotally attached to each of the hooks. Each of the parts are preferably formed from strips of light weight materials such as aluminum. The shoulder hook 12 is formed by a strip of rigid but pliable material bent in an arcuate shape which may be adjusted to a comfortable contour to fit individual users of the sling. To further insure comfort the hook 12 is provided with a shoulder contacting cushion 18 which is preferably formed from foam rubber material. This shoulder hook is pivotally attached by a loosely applied rivet 20 to the connecting link 16 formed by a straight length of material. The link 16 is provided with a series of attachment holes 24 through which an attachment bolt 26 is utilized to attach the link 16 to the arm support hook 14 which extends away from the link 16 in the same direction as the shoulder book 12. As can be more clearly seen in FIG. 4 the pivotal connection between the link 16 and the arm support hook 14 is formed by a conventional locknut 28 in cooperation with the bolt 26. It is to be noted that in addition to the adjustment holes 24 in the link that similar holes 30 are provided in the strap constituting the arm support hook 14 to provide a relatively large assortment of adjusted positions in limited lengths of material. This arrangement permits rapid initial adjustment of the sling to all statures of both children and adults.

The form of the sling 10 of FIGS. 1-4 is primarily intended for use when a cast 32 such as shown in FIG. 1 is to be supported. It is important to note that the double pivot connection of the link 16 to each of the hooks 12 and 14 provides a comfortable automatic positioning of the two hooks relative to both the shoulder and arm of the patient.

The arm support hook may be disposed in the same direction as the shoulder hook as seen in FIG. 2 or in the opposite direction as shown in FIG. 5. Either of these arrangements will result in comfortable support of a bro- 0 ken or lame arm. However, it is contemplated that the by the support hook 14 being disposed such as to cause the link 16 to be remote from contact with the chest. Additionally, it is to be realized that the turned in position of the arm support hook 14 reduces the possibility of the free end of the hook becoming entangled in clothing or other 'objects contacted in normal activity. As shown by the dashed lines 33 in FIG. 1 the sling may be worn with equal facility from either shoulder.

The arm sling arrangements shown in FIGS. 15 are primarily intended to provide support for the weight of an arm cast and accordingly the support hook 14 serves merely as a mechanical rest. For cases where support of a cast is not involved or after a cast has been removed the invention also embodies an alternative support hook 34 shown in "FIG. 6. This type support is intended for use when it is necessary to support an arm that does not require a cast. As can be seen from the drawing this form of the support is made from a rather wide plate 36 shaped intothe configuration of a hook whose inner arm supporting surface is provided with a foam rubber or other suitable type cushion 38. At its top end the plate 36 is provided with a tapered attachment section 40 which includes a plurality of aligned adjustment holes 42 which cooperate with the link. 16 in the same manner as the adjustment holes of the support hook 14.

The provision of this alterantive support 34 greatly adds to the versatility of the arm slings shown in FIGS. 2

and 3 in that these slings can be readily adapted to comfortably support injured or lame arms not encased in a cast or broken limbs during the period of relative weakness upon the removal of a cast. This feature is of the utmost desirability because it perimts facile removal of an arm from the support to permit the frequent short periods of I utilizing the features of the invention as embodied in the above described examples of the devices of the invention.

Accordingly, since the structures of this invention are susceptible to such modification the invention is to be considered as being limited only by the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A surgical support which comprises:

a first curved member adapted to be positioned on the shoulder of a user, said first curved member being formed of pliable material so that it may be adjusted to comfortably engage the shoulder of the user, said first curved member being continuously cushioned through the entire length adapted to contact the shoulder of the user, a pivot point on said first curved member;

a depending elongated linkage member formed of substantially flat, resilient material and having upper and lower ends, a pivot point on said upper end and a plurality of pivot points toward said lower end of said resilient elongated linkage member, a first pivot pin through said pivot point on said first curved member and said pivot point on said upper end of said linkage member so that said linkage member is ivotally secured to said first curved member; and

a second curved member having a pivot point, a second pivot pin through said pivot point on said second curved member and through one of said pivot points toward said lower end of said linkage member, the axes of the pivots being parallel to the plane containing said first and second curved members respectively, said second pivot pin being arranged so that said second curved member is pivotally secured to said lower end of said linkage member and so that the distance between said first and second pivot pins and thus between said first and second curved members can be selected; each of said curved members having a concave side, said concave sides facing one another, the radius of curvature of one of said concave sides being greater than the radius of curvature of the other concave side.

2. The surgical support of claim 1 wherein said first curved member adapted to be positioned on a shoulder of the user and said second curved member are formed of relatively wide,,thin, flat stock.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 705,024 7/02 Bigsby 128-94 1,305,749 6/19 Shirley 12s-s1 2,513,408 7/50 Fayne 12s s1 2,652,050 9/53 Schoeller 128-94 2,691,408 10/54 Beard 197-415 2,751,902 6/56 Loeffier 128-20 2,807,261 9/57 Strinden 12s-94 RICHARD A. GAUDET, Primary Examiner. ROBERT E. MORGAN, Examiner. 

1. A SURGICAL SUPPORT WHICH COMPRISES: A FIRST CURVED MEMBER ADAPTED TO BE POSITIONED ON THE SHOULDER OF A USER, SAID FIRST CURVED MEMBER BEING FORMED OF PLIABLE MATERIAL SO THAT IT MAY BE ADJUSTED TO COMFORTABLY ENGAGE THE SHOULDER OF THE USER, SAID FIRST CURVED MEMBER BEING CONTINUOUSLY CUSHIONED THROUGH THE ENTIRE LENGTH ADAPTED TO CONTACT THE SHOULDER OF THE USER, A PIVOT POINT ON SAID FIRST CURVED MEMBER; A DEPENDING ELONGATED LINKAGE MEMBER FORMED OF SUBSTANTIALLY FLAT, RESILIENT MATERIAL AND HAVING UPPER AND LOWER ENDS, A PIVOT POINT ON SAID UPPER END OF A PLURALITY OF PIVOT POINT TOWARD SAID LOWER END OF SAID RESILIENT ELONGATED LINKAGE MEMBER, A FIRST PIVOT PIN THROUGH SAID PIVOT POINT ON SAID FRIST CURVED MEMBER AND SAID PIVOT POINT ON SAID UPPER END OF SAID LINKAGE MEMBER SO THAT SAID LINKAGE MEMBER IS PIVOTALLY SECURED TO SAID FIRST CURVED MEMBER; AND A SECOND CURVED MEMBER HAVING A PIVOT POINT, A SECOND PIVOT PIN THROUGH SAID PIVOT POINT ON SAID SECOND CURVED MEMBER AND THROUGH ONE OF SAID PIVOT POINTS TOWARD SAID LOWER END OF SAID LINKAGE MEMBER, THE AXES OF THE PIVOTS BEING PARALLEL TO THE PLANE CONTAINING SAID FIRST AND SECOND CURVED MEMBERS RESPECTIVELY, SAID SECOND PIVOT PIN BEING ARRANGED SO THAT 